Funeral of former Japanese PM Abe held in Tokyo

People watch the hearse carrying the body of Japan's former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as it passes by in Tokyo, Japan, July 12, 2022. A funeral was held on Tuesday in central Tokyo for Abe, who was shot dead while delivering a speech last week. (Xinhua/Zhang Xiaoyu)

TOKYO, July 12 (Xinhua) -- A funeral was held on Tuesday in central Tokyo for Japan's former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was shot dead while delivering a speech last week.

The ceremony took place at the Zojoji Temple at the foot of the iconic Tokyo Tower. Besides Abe's wife Akie, Japanese Prime Minster Fumio Kishida, some lawmakers as well as foreign dignitaries and business leaders attended the funeral.

Memorial services are scheduled to be held later in Tokyo and in his constituency in Yamaguchi Prefecture.

Abe was shot Friday at close range by a 41-year old local, who used a handmade double-barreled gun, on a street in the western city of Nara while giving a speech for a candidate of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party for Sunday's upper house election. 

The hearse carrying the body of Japan's former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe runs on a street in Tokyo, Japan, July 12, 2022. A funeral was held on Tuesday in central Tokyo for Abe, who was shot dead while delivering a speech last week. (Xinhua/Zhang Xiaoyu)

People wait in line to mourn for Japan's former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo, Japan, July 12, 2022. A funeral was held on Tuesday in central Tokyo for Abe, who was shot dead while delivering a speech last week. (Xinhua/Zhang Xiaoyu)